A July look at November

Let's call last season's San Jose State University basketball frontcourt the Oakes and Webster Administration. A hefty part of the offensive design was to try and pound the ball inside for as many touches as possible. Both have departed, therefore each starting position is wide open.

The 2010-2011 frontcourt portion of the Spartan roster indicate change in multiple aspects. However, keep in mind we have witnessed but one of the centers and forwards in action to date so, like in a sideview mirror, figures and also production of these players may be larger or smaller than what what we speculate or comes to actual fruition.

THE PLAYERS

Let's delve into the various talents.

6-foot-8 Wil Carter and 6-foot-7 Brylle Kamen brings 'reps' with them -- more so Carter -- of face-the-basket shooting prowess. We're talking 15-to-18 foot range. This will allow the entering of a pick-and-pop offensive element into the Spartan playbook. We're not indicating this will necessarily be a consistent feature but certainly a new option for which opponents will have to defend.

Salt Lake Community College Coach Norm Parrish offered this earlier about his former top player: ""Wil has a really high ceiling. He has the ability to hit the 15-to-18-foot shot. He is also a good rebounder who is fairly long and can run and jump."

Here is Russ Beck, Kamen's community college coach: "He [Kamen] is a good rebounder with a big, strong body and can shoot off the dribble and with the pullup jumper. He can also pick-and-pop, shooting on the perimeter."

Additionally, both Carter and Kamen are proficient playing with their backs to the baskets

Plus, 6-foot-8 Matt Ballard self-described one of his basketball skills as scoring ability via his mid-range jumper.

Joe Henson, also 6-foot-8, returns and indications are that his progress is noticeable. He has been working out with a physical and basketball skills trainer this summer.

The joker that remains in the frontcourt deck of five card stud (sorry, we couldn't resist) is 6-foot-8 Moses Omolade. His eligibility determination remains tangled up in the court system and is rapidly approaching proportions of Jarndyce and Jarndyce -- the interminable legal case in Charles Dickens' "Bleak House."

Omolade would provide a missing element not offered by the other SJSU quartet -- shotblocking and defensive intimidation.

Here's Tyson Aye, a former SJSU assistant basketball coach now heading the Imperial Valley College men's basketball program, on Omolade: "Moses was in our league and we've played him four times in the last few years. He is a defensive force in the paint. At 6-8, Moses is quick and extremely long. He has one of the longest wingspans I've ever seen, and I've actually seen Moses block 10 shots in a single game. I've heard nothing but great things about his character. The Spartans got a good one with Moses."

We believe he is going to be eligible in 2010-2011 and therefore are including him in the forecast.

THE COMING SEASON

Haley Joe Osment saw dead people in "The Sixth Sense" -- what will sportswriters envision for the Spartan bigs in the 2010-2011 season?.

This is an aspect that is going to be fascinating. That being, how the various prognosticators handle their San Jose State pre-season previews. More than likely, none of the non-San Jose area based reporters and bloggers will have even witnessed any of the Spartan frontcourters in action, let alone even have a modicum of familiarity with who we're going to call The Spartan Five.

So just what will appear in print on the quintet? Probably not much, with the emphasis being on Adrian Oliver and Justin Graham taking SJSU are far they collectively can. .

What do we forsee?

The collective shooting percentage of this bunch won't rival that of the departed C.J. Webster -- very few could -- but will offer a variety of scoring options heretofore unavailable. A plus is that this addition will require more movement from defenders. It will also be difficult to match the shotblocking and rebounding proclivities of Chris Oakes.

However, we see an actual plus forthcoming on the defensive end from the new group. The number of blocked shots will tumble but this 2010-2011 collective will provide very good quickness in leaving the paint whenever necessary to defend and also a greater desire to fight in establishing and maintaining defensive positioning within the paint.

A final attribute worthy of listing is proficiency of getting up and down the court, especially on offensive. Carter, Kamen and Omolade have demonstrated this talent -- an addition not on display from any recent SJSU frontcourters.

FINALLY

The ultimate question is: will San Jose State have a better, the same or a worse frontcourt than that of last season?

The answer: nobody truly knows -- that's why there are so many tall, expansive and swanky casino buildings in Las Vegas. The answer to this question will ultimately play out before our eyes.

But we see this group of guys having a different mindset -- a do-what-needs-to-be-done-for-the-team attitude.

Our senses about the frontcourters indicate this:

The best scorer: Wil Carter

Best defender: Moses Omolade

Most explosive: Omolade and Kamen

Most physical: Kamen and Ballard

An addendum: We believe Garrett Ton and Jerry Casey will again walk-on as members of the frontcourt. We're unsure of the status of Kyle Thomas but here's hoping he is participating as a Spartan as well in 2010-2011.

APR versus real academic progress

It's called APR, short for academic progress rate. Instituted in 2005, it's the NCAA measurement for college sports teams.

Here's the Wikipedia definition: a metric established by the NCAA to measure the success or failure of collegiate athletic teams in moving student-athletes towards graduation.

The theory/reality is that the APR is designed to publicly 'expose' coaches and athletic directors giving lip service to academics and 'reward' those seemingly committed to an emphasis on working towards a degree.

However, the tremendous disparity in college athlete academic service budgets -- millions of dollars at some BCS institutions versus a veritable collecting recyclables to fund the assistance at many other schools -- is not factored into the APR equation.

Plus, the coaches at the higher level schools also complain that the preparation necessary to perform one's best in NBA draft tryouts interferes with their respective stars finishing out semesters/quarters. The NBA realistically forces a prep basketballer into a year, sometimes two, of college attendance due to its age limit even when there is no desire on the player to be situated in the halls of higher education. These coaches deem any APR calculation is inherently unfair without taking such a factor into consideration.

Like with most legislative efforts of any manner, one size is supposed to but doesn't fit all.

Individual explanations pertaining to the failure of certain student-athletes to progress or graduate are inexplicably not allowed.

It's fair to call it a sledgehammer employed to catch fireflies approach to confronting a problem.

Imitating the late Walter Cronkite, that's the way it is -- for better and for worse.

Closer to home, the collective academic standing of San Jose State men's basketball was submerged, to put it mildly, in 2005. Making progress wasn't emphasized, funded or staffed, and it truly appeared that no one cared.

Since that dead end five years ago, tremendous work was done and continues to take place to pull SJSU hoops out of an academic morass.

How so?

To the best of our knowledge, only three players since 2005 have decided -- THEIR CHOICE -- not to finish the units necessary to earn their respective college degrees. Each was provided that opportunity to complete the coursework but declined.

This ratio indicates an extremely positive trend underway -- no, make that a norm -- now at Washington Square for men's basketball.

This certainly raises a question: should a school be penalized for enrolling a student-athlete who ultimately decides not to avail himself of the assistance in place for him earning a degree?

If the answer is yes, why so? Is the thinking that the coach and school shouldn't have recruited this individual in the first place and therefore a penalty must be paid?

That might be fair in some cases but generally the ones involving student-athletes flunking out early on in college. But not so for a student-athlete who enjoyed solid academic progress for two or three years who then decided to move on to another chapter in his life.

But fairness, of course, isn't found anywhere in the NCAA by-laws and regulations.

However, that shouldn't stop us from being proud of the verifiable academic progress made by all involved in Spartan men's basketball.

Talking with Talvin Hester

The saying goes "don't mess with Texas" and new SJSU Assistant Coach Talvin Hester is certainly familiar with the Lone Star State life, attitude and most certainly basketball.

That's because in Prairie View, Irving, Tyler, Dallas, Fort Worth, Arlington and undoubtedly other in-state locations are venues where he has established his hoops imprint as both coach and player and that influence continues to be felt today.

But he will indeed be doing some TX 'messing' of his own when utilizing his contacts there -- and elsewhere -- come recruiting time. Spiriting out a talent or two from any of those aforementioned towns and cities or say San Antonio, Pflugerville, Galveston or Austin and getting them to Silicon Valley is one of his goals as a Spartan.

So who is Talvin Hester? Here's the Cliff's Notes version, Spartanhoops style.

Well, he grew up playing football. Why was that his foremost sport? "I have an uncle who went to Ohio State and played 10 years in the NFL," Hester explained.

But he played every sport as a youngster and even earned letters in tennis during high school.

Eventually a growth spurt got him to 6-feet-4 and football was left as an avocation, sent to the wayside in favor of hoops.

His decision is our gain.


So why did he enter coaching?

"In college, I wondered what to major in as I had this vision of wearing a suit and working downtown," according to Hester. "That was a strong lure so I focused on business and marketing."

Then family issues intervened.

School was put on hold and he went to work at Delta Airlines.

But Hester felt "something was missing from my life."

In one of those moments of kismet, "one of my old coaches invited me to help coach an AAU youth team."

During the first practice, something clicked for Hester. "I knew I wanted to help young people."


So began his coaching résumé. It was a time to finish college (Texas Wesleyan), gain experience and build contacts. He accomplished just such, building his personal brand at multiple locations:

* Dallas Mustangs AAU team

* North Lake College

* Texas Rim Rockers, USBL

* Texas College

Hester was then hired on at Prairie View A&M and worked his way up to an Associate Head Coach position.


Prairie View A&M is part of the Southwestern Athletic Conference, which also consists of Alabama A&M, Alabama State, Alcorn State, Grambling State, Jackson State, Mississippi Valley State, Prairie View A&M, Texas Southern and University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff.

The league plays an 18-game league schedule. His most memorable Panther season? "2008-2009 because we started 5-0, then lost four in a row but we went 7-2 in the second half of our schedule," Hester explained.

Especially in the second go-around, a change took place. "It was our 'D' that carried us," Hester offered. "Everyone can't score all the time but if we got stops, we knew we had the chance to be in every game. We decided to make defense important and focused on half court, man-to-man defense."

Then in 2009-2010, the transformation expanded when Prairie View finished 14th nationally in field goal percentage defense, 11th in three-point field goal percentage defense.

"We had been there for a few years, a year or two on the edge of being good," explained Hester. "We were losing games by 2, 3, 5, 7 points, losing 'easier' games on the road. Last season especially, our older guys took defending to heart and our new guys joined in."


We recall a couple of quotes we previously came across about general differences between California and Texas high school ball and asked Hester about this.

His reply: "It is different though not necessarily better in either place. It's like the PAC-10 versus Big 12 -- skill level versus hard-nosed physicality. There is a little more skill and finesse in California versus power and strength in Texas. But both translate into success. Of course, there are other situations too. Drew Gordon (Archbishop Mitty, UCLA and now New Mexico) plays like he is from Texas where someone like Nolan Dennis {a former Texas prepster now a sophomore-to-be at Baylor) is more California on the court."

Hester added, "In Texas, basketball was football-driven for so many years in that really good football players were good enough in basketball to play both sports. But in the last 10 to 12 years, players like T.J. Ford and Daniel Ewing came around. They were good and just basketball players -- they were not football kids."


The easily recognizable coaches Hester admires the most are Michigan State's Tom Izzo and Wisconsin's Bo Ryan. The reason for his ardor: "They don't get the players Kentucky, North Carolina and Kansas do but are always competing for the title and their players play tough."

In closing, if you do desire to mess with Coach Hester, begin with the fact that he is, yes, a diehard Dallas Cowboys fan.

Mark Emmons/Mercury News on C.J. Webster

C.J. Webster leaves SJSU basketball to get to work
Mark Emmons
Mercury News
6/29/2010

The NBA draft came and went, and C.J. Webster's name wasn't called. This was not a surprise.

Webster, after all, averaged only 8.8 points and 4.8 rebounds for San Jose State last season. Those aren't bound-for-the-NBA numbers. And that's why it seemed odd that Webster, who had a year of eligibility remaining with the Spartans, would choose to declare for the draft.

So, what was he thinking?

Go here for the remainder.

Meet Matt Ballard

Matt Ballard photo courtesy of IVC athletics

At 6-foot-8 and 225 pounds, Matt Ballard is the final piece in the San Jose State basketball recruiting puzzle and has definitely taken the road less traveled.

After playing at Trabuco Hills High, where he averaged 13 points and 10.3 rebounds as a 2006-2007 senior, Ballard signed on with UC Irvine. The 2007-2008 season had him on the court for 120 minutes as an Anteater freshman

He then transferred in-county to Irvine Valley College. IVC Coach Jerry Hernandez said this of Ballard in the pre-season: "Matt is going to be a player for us. He is such a high character guy and is extremely unselfish and knowledgeable. The challenge with Matt sometimes is to get him to be a more selfish offensive player..."

Ballard earned a starting spot and averaged 7.7 points and 6.7 rebounds a game while battling various injuries throughout the season.

Subsequently, family matters intervened and Ballard put his involvement with college basketball on hold.

He transferred to San Jose State in 2009, enrolling as a student, his only sports involvement being pickup games.

Here's where it gets interesting.

Like Lana Turner being 'discovered' at the soda counter of Schwab's Drugstore in Hollywood, Ballard was observed by one of the SJSU basketball staff when both parties were participating in a pickup game on campus. Ballard's size was a no-brainer but his skill level also impressed.

Introductions are made, Ballard is told "you need to talk to coach" and, voilà, Ballard becomes Spartanized, adding a physical, fundamentally sound, hard-working and skilled 'big' to the frontcourt rotation.

Spartanhoops recently talked with Jerry Hernandez about Ballard and his praise was effusive. He said, "I loved the kid. He is a good piece to any team -- he makes others around him better, his basketball IQ is high -- he really understands how to play -- and he is strong and skilled. He plays passionately and is a hardworker.

Hernandez continued, "If he has a fault, it's that he doesn't allow himself to miss a shot -- he thinks he should make every one. I know he loves it at San Jose State and is excited at playing again."

We also spoke with Ballard recently. The words passion and basketball were connected and repeated.

Asked about his best basketball skills, he said, "Shooting, especially my mid-range game, defense and rebounding."

As a youngster, it was soccer, volleyball, baseball and hoops. "But my passion has always been basketball," Ballard explained, adding, "I also golf now."

Ballard credits his father, who played at Dominguez High in Compton, as his biggest basketball influence. "He taught me how to play, coached me throughout high school and gave me the opportunity to play club team basketball around the country."

What he sees as differences between himself on the court as a high school senior and now, he said, "I'm more experienced and know how to play but I still have the same passion I did back then."

What is working for him about his current setup is that "San Jose is close enough to home but far enough away for me to get the college experience" as opposed to the schools in Irvine. Ballard wanted to thank his parents and family members, characterizing them as "strong supporters who will be traveling up from southern California" for Spartan home games.

He is majoring in kinesiology with the idea of eventually becoming a university athletics director.

When queried about what Spartan basketball fans should expect to see from him in 2010-2011, Ballard offered, "what Spartan fans will see is a hardworking, unselfish player who is willing to do whatever it takes to win."

His best basketball moment is when he signed his original letter of intent with UC Irvine and, of course, there is a backstory to putting his name on the official paperwork. "I was told as a freshman that I would never make varsity and I became a starter as a sophomore," Ballard said. "I was also told I would never earn a D-1 scholarship."

Quick, someone tell him that he'll never win a spot on any of the all-Western Athletic Conference squads.

Mitty and Bellarmine win Spartan team camp

The Spartan Team Camp took place this weekend at San Jose State University with a total of 32 teams participating, 24 of the varsity variety and eight junior varsity squads.

With each playing a minimum of five games over two days, Archbishop Mitty emerged as the varsity champions with Bellarmine College Preparatory winning the junior varsity section of the tourney.

Coach Tim Kennedy leads the Mitty varsity team while Vince Charlton heads the Bellarmine JV program, assisted by Mark Riese.

Spartans playing abroad

Here is our most updated list of former Spartan basketballers currently playing abroad:

Gustavo Ayon 6-foot-10, Tenerife (Spanish League)

Menelik Barbary 6-foot-9 C Africain Tunisia

Demetrius Brown 6-foot-7 BBC Nitia Luxembourg

Oliver Caballero 6-foot-9 Pioneros Mexico

Marquin Chandler 6-foot-8 Dongbu Promy Korean League

Eric Walton 6'9'' Rochester R. (PBL)

Darnell Williams 6-foot-5 Rouen France

Can you help out with the SJSU summer camps?

The Men's Basketball Program is hosting its sixth annual summer basketball camps this summer for boys ages 6-16. The camps have grown year by year and we are looking forward to another successful summer.

Part of our efforts with the summer basketball camps is community outreach and helping underprivileged youth who would not normally be able to attend camp. We have partnered with Next Door Solutions to Domestic Violence which has many different services for victims of domestic violence including housing services, support groups, and much more. Our program allocates "Next Door" scholarships for summer camp for the children in their program.

I wanted to ask any willing Rebounder to help sponsor a child from "Next Door." A full sponsorship for a child is $215 and a half sponsorship is $107.50. Any help would be greatly appreciated and is put to good use.

Checks are payable to: SJSU Men's Basketball Camp and sent to:

SJSU Men's Basketball
Attn: Brent Davis
1393 S. 7th St.
San Jose, CA 95112

If you have any questions please contact Coach Davis at 408.924.1222

Thank you for your continued support.

Go Spartans!

Meet Wil Carter (again)

6-foot-8 Wil Carter is going to be a frontcourter the likes of possibly never before seen by San Jose State hoops fans. That because he is of the basketball species -- minus the Latin -- forward with shooting prowess extending into three-point range.

A transfer from Coach Norm Parrish's very successful Salt Lake City College (SLCC) program, Carter first played at SLCC in 2006-2007. He then headed to Brazil for his two-year LDS mission. Note: any fans wishing to practice their Portuguese will have a willing and able partner in Carter.

He returned to Salt Lake City this past summer. In the 2009-2010 season in which the Bruins went 24-8, Carter averaged 12.2 points per game and 7.0 rebounds a contest while playing 23 minutes a game. He shot 49% overall, 75% at the foul line.

Carter was the leading rebounder for SLCC in 16 games and was especially effective on the offensive boards as he nabbed 92 off his 225 rebounds at that end.

Late in the season against Snow College, he put up a double-double of 18 points and 15 boards. Versus Colorado Northwestern, Carter totaled a 14 points/15 boards double-double.

In an earlier interview, Coach Parrish said this of his star: "Wil has a really high ceiling. He has the ability to hit the 15-to-18-foot shot and is also a good rebounder who is fairly long and can run and jump."

He added that Carter is a four, a power forward with the possibilities of playing some at the three spot. "But he could put 20 more pounds [Carter currently weighs 210] on his frame and still be effective."

In talking with Spartanhoops recently, Carter replied when asked about his best basketball skills with, "My jumpshot and ability to run the floor. My shooting range is from the three-point line in and my mid range jumper is really effective." He sees himself playing the four spot.

So why did he choose San Jose State? The answer: multiple reasons. "I really like the coaching staff, they seem like really good people," Carter explained. "I also just love San Jose, the feel of the city and the environment."

Carter is familiar with Utah State's Brady Jardine. The latter played for Twin Falls High (Idaho) and the pair were on the same team a couple of times during spring and summer play. This pairing will be an interesting matchup come Western Athletic Conference play.

Carter is looking to major in communications, with a business minor. More importantly, he is getting married on July 7 and he and his wife will arrive in San Jose around the end of July or early August.

As for his best moments on the court, Carter offered a couple. Playing for Highland High in Pocatello (Idaho) against a rival squad, "I was running the break, got the ball, went up and dunked over three guys." His other highlight: "As a freshman for Salt Lake City College, I hit a game-winning three against Snow College."

But it was almost another sport for Carter and his dreams. "I played baseball for a long time and was thinking I would eventually be a college baseball player. But right before my freshman year [in high school], I broke one of my arms and then I also broke the other."

That obviously limited his participation in any sport and by the time his junior year rolled around, it was basketball and a new direction for him.

He acknowledges his biggest basketball influences as "my Dad, my fiancée, Bill Green and his sons Tony and Joe Green and Coach Parrish." Carter's fiancée aided him in his decision to sign with San Jose State and provided support last season at SLCC, Bill Green is the assistant coach of Carter's high school team in Pocatello and he and his sons worked very hard with Carter. As for Norm Parrish, Carter recalled "he looked me in the eye on my recruiting visit and said 'you can make your dreams happen if you come here [SLCC].'" Carter lauds Parrish with this compliment: "He taught me how to be a college basketball player."

Now, Carter is continuing the dream in San Jose.

Meet Coach Hester

We will offer a Q-and-A with Coach Hester in the near future.

Talvin Hester - New Men's Assistant Basketball Coach
San Jose State Athletics
6/9/2010

San Jose, Calif.-----Talvin Hester, formerly the associate head coach of the Prairie View A&M University men's basketball program, has accepted a men's basketball assistant coaching position at San Jose State University. George Nessman, the Spartans' head coach, made the announcement.

Hester spent five seasons (2006 through 2010) at Prairie View A&M and helped the Panthers to winning records in 2009 and 2010. Prior to 2009, Prairie View suffered five consecutive losing seasons, failed to win at least 10 games in each of those seasons and did not have back-to-back winning records for a 50-year span.

"Talvin Hester will be a great asset in many phases of our program. We are excited and pleased that he has made the decision to become a Spartan. Talvin did outstanding work at Prairie View as the Associate Head Coach," Nessman says about Hester who helped the Panthers finish in the top-15 nationally in field goal percentage defense (14th) and three-point field goal percentage defense (11th) last season.

"He is a proven coach who helped direct Prairie View's rise up the SWAC (Southwest Athletic Conference) standings in large measure due to their dramatic improvement on the defensive end. Talvin is a skilled recruiter who will be counted upon to bring us into some new recruiting territories. He is a personable and gregarious individual who connects well with young people.

"Talvin shares common values with our staff and should be a great fit for us as we press forward with the continued growth and development of Spartan basketball."

The new San Jose State assistant broke into coaching in 2002 at North Lake College in Irving, Texas. His wide-ranging coaching resume includes stops with the Texas Rim Rockers of the United States Basketball League as an assistant coaching intern and the Dallas Mustangs AAU team for one season. He was an assistant coach at Texas College in Tyler, Texas for the 2005 season before going to Prairie View A&M.

A 2003 Texas Wesleyan University graduate, he majored in interdisciplinary studies. Hester played his college basketball at Dallas Christian College.

"It's exciting to take on a new job in a new league (the Western Athletic Conference) in a new area for my family and me. I'm happy to work for Coach Nessman. For him to believe in me is a big thing. I'm ready to work as hard as I can to help this program," says the new San Jose State assistant coach who will be 32-years old in July.

The Toledo, Ohio native and his wife, Jamieka, an elementary school teacher who specializes in teaching English as a second language, are in the process of relocating to California.